About this quote

Pain and chaos will wear you down if you stop; steady motion is the simplest way to change what you face. Break the situation into one tiny next move and do that thing now. Ask for help if you need it, but avoid quitting before the pressure eases. Can you push for one more hour or one more effort? Small forward moves change the score.

When to use it

• After three investor rejections, a startup founder tells her co-founder, "If you're going through hell, keep going," and schedules one more demo for next week.
• At 2 a.m. before the final exam, a law student rubs their eyes and mutters, "If you're going through hell, keep going," then opens the next case file.
• During a long rehab run with a sore knee, a runner tells the pacer, "If you're going through hell, keep going," and focuses on steady cadence to finish the mile.
• After getting laid off, a parent says to their kids, "We won't stop — if you're going through hell, keep going," while making a new weekly budget and applying to jobs.